Voters would pay extra 1p tax for a better NHS

Published:14:52Tuesday 06 June 2017

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Two thirds of voters in the North West trust Labour more than any other party with the future of the NHS, according to a new survey.

Nearly the same number think the health service has got WORSE in the last three years, while more than eight in 10 say they would be prepared to pay an extra 1p in the pound on income tax for a better-funded NHS.

The survey also reveals that 71.4% of people in the north west believe there should be universal access to all NHS services, while 71.0% say the private sector should have no role in running the NHS.

In terms of the current state of the NHS, 48.6% of survey respondents in the region say they have struggled to get a GP appointment in the last year, while 64.7% said they thought NHS services had got worse since 2014.

Only 28.8% said health chiefs should be allowed to continue charging for car parking at hospitals.

With health set to be a major election issue, the gap in trust between Labour and the Conservatives when it comes to which party would best protect the NHS is startling.

Given a choice of four major parties - the Tories, Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party - some 67.9% of respondents in the North West said they trusted Labour most with the NHS.

That was a higher proportion than in any other region of the UK.

Only 21.0% said they trusted the Conservatives most, while 6.0% said the Lib Dems and 5.1% the Greens.

There was, however, significant support for the flagship Lib Dem policy of making people pay an extra 1p in the pound in income tax to raise an estimated £6bn a year for the NHS.

Some 81.0% of people in the North West said they would be prepared to pay it, compared to 9.6% who said they would not and 9.5% who did not know.

The survey was carried out in partnership with Google Surveys and completed by 8,331 people.